OREGON REAL ESTATE ROUND TABLE

Tag: Portland

  • 5 Reasons to Stop Worrying About Home Prices, by Eric Schurenberg, Huffingtonpost.com


    The New York Times more or less pronounced the single family home dead as an asset this week. Data from the National Association of Realtors and theFederal Home Financing Agency hammered some nails into the coffin. But come now, folks. Let’s apply a little perspective:

    1. The pessimistic scenario isn’t all that pessimistic One downbeat economist quoted by the Times predicted that housing will rise at the rate of inflation for the foreseeable future. The rate of inflation happens to be roughly the long-term return on residential real estate over the past century, according to Robert Shiller, the Yale economist and real estate historian. So the bubble of 2000 to 2006 was the anomaly, not the “grim” long-term future foreseen by the Times. (Speaking of anomalies, Shiller in this interview warns against over-reacting to the lousy housing numbers that came out this week since they were skewed by the expiration of Uncle Sam’s homebuyer’s credit.)
    2. You can still make money on a house, even if the pessimists are right. If you put 20% down on a home and it rises by the rate of inflation, your equity appreciates at five times the rate of inflation. There’s no guarantee that there will be any appreciation at all–that’s the risk–and maintenance and taxes will take away some of your return. But you don’t need a bubble to be rewarded for taking the risk.
    3. You still get plenty of value from owning a home, even if you don’t make a killing. As my colleague Charlie Farrell points out, paying down a mortgage allows you to accelerate your single biggest housing expense into your peak earning years when you can best afford it. Once you’ve paid it off-at retirement, presumably-you’ve significantly pared your living expenses. And as my colleague Linda Stern points out, you also get a place to call your own for all that time-which is really the point, after all.
    4. If history is any guide, the Times story is a buy signal. These are the kinds of stories that tend to appear on front pages at market bottoms. Yes, the weak economy is keeping home buyers off the market. Yes, foreclosures are clogging the market, and smart people like Barry Ritholtz believe that homes have further to fall. There are dozens of reasons no one will ever buy a home again. But that’s how it always looks at a bottom.
    5. At some price, people will still buy. A house in a reasonably viable neighborhood is not an AIG bond or a share of Lehman Brothers. It has an intrinsic value. People need somewhere to live, and prices have been falling faster than rents. The National Association of Home Builders Affordability Index is near record levels. The CoreLogic home price to rental ratio, which compares prices and rents, shows that the rents and ownership costs are coming back into line, even if they’re not historically cheap yet. But at some price, a home becomes so attractive compared to renting that it becomes foolish not to buy. That price may not be what you hoped. It may well be even lower than today’s price. But your home’s price now is far closer today to that intrinsic value than it was in 2007. Why wasn’t theTimes calling the housing market dead then?

     

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eric-schurenberg/5-reasons-to-stop-worryin_b_696437.html

  • Jumbo Mortgage Rates Continue to Fall, by Rosemary Rugnetta, Freerateupdate.com


    Just as conforming mortgage rates continue to be unpredictable, the same can be said for the jumbo mortgage rate market. As the housing market continues to correct itself, mortgage rates across the board continue to get lower. Purchasing and refinancing higher priced homes just got a little easier as jumbo mortgage ratescontinue to fall to record lows at 5%.

    Jumbo loans are those mortgages that are above the conforming loan limit of $417,000 and are not backed by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. This conforming lending limit is higher in some high cost areas around the country. With jumbo loans popular in locations such as New York and California, the current low jumbo rates are making it an opportune time for many borrowers to refinance. In some areas where regular sized homes cost above $750,000, the low jumbo mortgage rate is spurring up home sales and refinances, thus bringing life to a stalled market.

    Just a little over a year ago, jumbo mortgage rates were approximately 1.5% higher than today. With record low jumbo mortgage rates, many borrowers throughout the country are finding that this is the opportunity they have been waiting for to refinance from a higher interest jumbo loan. By refinancing a jumbo loan to the current lower rate, borrowers are saving hundreds of dollars each month. Most of these people will often reinvest these savings back into the economy which will help the economic recovery get off the ground. At this time, lenders are finding that the availability of money has improved while, at the same time, the price of that money has also improved. If banks continue to gain confidence with their lending in the jumbo mortgage market and do well with their returns, they may begin to ease up their lending in the remaining tighter markets.

    Although jumbo mortgage rates continue to fall opening up new life to this niche housing market, qualifying still remains stricter than in the past. These large loans carry more risk to the banks than conforming loans. August 26, 2010 (FreeRateUpdate.com) – Those who wish to qualify for a jumbo loan will need excellent credit scores with the minimum score being at least 720. and sufficient income, relevant to the loan, that needs to be documented for at least 2 years. New purchases require a minimum of 20% down payment while refinances require a minimum of 20% equity in the existing home. After all of the calculations have been done, most jumbo loans require that the monthly mortgage payment not exceed more than 38% of income.

    For anyone who can meet these qualifications, now is a good time to trade up to a bigger home that requires a jumbo mortgage or to refinance an existing one. By doing so, these borrowers will appreciate the savings by attaining a jumbo mortgage at such low rates for many years to come. Since no one can predict when the trend will stop and rates will start to rise, it’s time to get the process in motion as jumbo mortgage rates continue to fall and the jumbo loan business heats up.

    http://www.freerateupdate.com/jumbo-mortgages/jumbo-mortgage-rates-continue-to-fall-6087

  • Procrastination on Foreclosures, Now ‘Blatant,’ May Backfire, by Jeff Horwitz and Kate Berry, American Banker


    Ever since the housing collapse began, market seers have warned of a coming wave of foreclosures that would make the already heightened activity look like a trickle.

    The dam would break when moratoriums ended, teaser rates expired, modifications failed and banks finally trained the army of specialists needed to process the volume.

    But the flood hasn’t happened. The simple reason is that servicers are not initiating or processing foreclosures at the pace they could be.

    By postponing the date at which they lock in losses, banks and other investors positioned themselves to benefit from the slow mending of the real estate market. But now industry executives are questioning whether delaying foreclosures — a strategy contrary to the industry adage that “the first loss is the best loss” — is about to backfire. With home prices expected to fall as much as 10% further, the refusal to foreclose quickly on and sell distressed homes at inventory-clearing prices may be contributing to the stall of the overall market seen in July sales data. It also may increase the likelihood of more strategic defaults.

    It is becoming harder to blame legal or logistical bottlenecks, foreclosure analysts said.

    “All the excuses have been used up. This is blatant,” said Sean O’Toole, CEO of ForeclosureRadar.com, a Discovery Bay, Calif., company that has been documenting the slowdown in Western markets.

    Banks have filed fewer notices of default so far this year in California, the nation’s biggest real estate market, than they did 2009 or 2008, according to data gathered by the company. Foreclosure default notices are now at their lowest level since the second quarter of 2007, when the percentage of seriously delinquent loans in the state was one-sixth what it is now.

    New data from LPS Applied Analytics in Jacksonville, Fla., suggests that the backlog is no longer worsening nationally — but foreclosures are not at the levels needed to clear existing inventory.

    The simple explanation is that banks are averse to realizing losses on foreclosures, experts said.

    “We can’t have 11% of Californians delinquent and so few foreclosures if regulators are actually forcing banks to clean assets off their books,” O’Toole said.

    Officially, of course, this problem shouldn’t exist. Accounting rules mandate that banks set aside reserves covering the full amount of their anticipated losses on nonperforming loans, so sales should do no additional harm to balance sheets.

    Within the last two quarters, many companies have even begun taking reserve releases based on more bullish assumptions about the value of distressed properties.

    Now there is widespread reluctance to test those valuations, an indication that banks either fear they have insufficient or are gambling for a broad housing recovery that experts increasingly say is not coming.

    Banks did not choose the strategy on their own.

    With the exception of a spike in foreclosure activity that peaked in early-to-mid 2009, after various industry and government moratoriums ended and the Treasury Department released guidelines for the Home Affordable Modification Program, no stage of the process has returned to pre-September 2008 levels. That is when the Treasury unveiled the Troubled Asset Relief Program and promised to help financial institutions avoid liquidating assets at panic-driven prices. The Financial Accounting Standards Board and other authorities followed suit with fair-value dispensations.

    These changes made it easier to avoid fire-sale marks — and less attractive to foreclose on bad assets and unload them at market clearing prices. In California, ForeclosureRadar data shows, the volume of foreclosure filings has never returned to the levels they had reached before government intervention gave servicers breathing room.

    Some servicing executives acknowledged that stalling on foreclosures will cause worse pain in the future — and that the reckoning may be almost here.

    “The industry as a whole got into a panic mode and was worried about all these loans going into foreclosure and driving prices down, so they got all these programs, started Hamp and internal mods and short sales,” said John Marecki, vice president of East Coast foreclosure operations for Prommis Solutions, an Atlanta company that provides foreclosure processing services. Until recently, he was senior vice president of default administration at Flagstar Bank in Troy, Mich. “Now they’re looking at this, how they held off and they’re getting to the point where maybe they made a mistake in that realm.”

    Moreover, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have increased foreclosures in the past two months on borrowers that failed to get permanent loan modifications from the government, according to data from LPS. If the government-sponsored enterprises’ share of foreclosures is increasing, that implies foreclosure activity by other market participants is even less robust than the aggregate.

    “The math doesn’t bode well for what is ultimately going to occur on the real estate market,” said Herb Blecher, a vice president at LPS. “You start asking yourself the question when you look at these numbers whether we are fixing the problem or delaying the inevitable.”

    Blecher said the increase in foreclosure starts by the GSEs “is nowhere near” what is needed to clear through the shadow inventory of 4.5 million loans that were 90 days delinquent or in foreclosure as of July 31.

    LPS nationwide data on foreclosure starts reflects the holdup: Though the GSEs have gotten faster since the first quarter, portfolio and private investors have actually slowed.

    “What we’re seeing is things are starting to move through the system but the inflows and outflows are not clearing the inventory yet,” he said.

    Delayed foreclosures might be good news for delinquent borrowers, but it comes at a high price.

    Stagnant foreclosures likely contributed to the abysmal July home sales, since banks are putting fewer homes for sale at market-clearing prices.

    Moreover, Freddie says a good 14% of homes that are seriously delinquent are vacant. In such circumstances, eventual recovery values rapidly deteriorate.

    Defaulted borrowers were spending an average of 469 days in their home after ceasing to make payments as of July 31, so the financial attraction of strategic defaults increases.

    One possible way banks are dealing with that last threat is through what O’Toole calls “foreclosure roulette,” in which banks maintain a large pool of borrowers in foreclosure but foreclose on a small number at random.

    O’Toole said the resulting confusion would make it harder for borrowers to evaluate the costs and benefits of defaulting and fan fears that foreclosure was imminent.

    http://www.americanbanker.com/issues/175_165/foreclosures-modifications-california-1024663-1.html

  • Multnomahforeclosures.com: Updated Notice of Default Lists


    Multnomahforeclosures.com was updated today (August 24th, 2010) with the largest list of Notice Defaults to date. With Notice of Default records dating back over 2 years. Multnomahforeclosures.com documents the fall of the great real estate bust of the 21st centry. The lists are of the raw data taken from county records.

    It is not a bad idea for investors and people that are seeking a home of their own to keep an eye on the Notice of Default lists. Many of the homes listed are on the market or will be.

    All listings are in PDF and Excel Spread Sheet format.

    Multnomah County Foreclosures

    http://multnomahforeclosures.com

  • Foreclosure rate soars in suburbs, Steve Law, Portland Tribune


    While Portlanders continue to be plagued by home foreclosures, the number of distressed homeowners is spiking even faster in the suburbs these days.

    Foreclosure actions filed against homeowners in upscale Lake Oswego mushroomed 20 percent the first six months of this year, compared with the same period last year, and rose 10 percent in jobs-rich Hillsboro, according to RealtyTrac Inc., an Irvine, Calif., real estate data services company. RealtyTrac counted nearly 300 Lake Oswego properties socked with foreclosure actions from January through June and more than 500 Hillsboro properties.

    Foreclosures also shot up at a rate faster than Portland in suburban Oregon City, Milwaukie, Tigard, Tualatin, Sherwood and St. Helens.

    “The foreclosure activity that is occurring in suburban markets in Oregon is unprecedented,” says Tom Cusack, a retired federal housing manager in Portland who continues to track the issue via his Oregon Housing Blog. “It’s affecting not just rural areas, not just inner-city neighborhoods, but suburban neighborhoods, probably more substantially than any time in the past,” Cusack says.

    From January through June, foreclosure filings grew 6.5 percent in the city of Portland, compared with a year earlier, and 8.5 percent in Portland suburbs, not counting Clark County, according to RealtyTrac data.

    In 10 different local ZIP codes — three in Portland and seven in the suburbs — foreclosure actions were filed against more than 2 percent of all properties the first six months of 2010.

    Dominating local market

    Realtors say a record number of foreclosures dominates the area housing market, depressing home prices but also attracting bargain-hunters looking for distressed properties.

    “Either you’re helping people get into them or helping get out of them,” says Fred Stewart, a Northeast Portland Realtor who operates a website listing foreclosed homes for sale in Multnomah County.

    Distressed properties account for “40 percent of the business right now,” says Dale Kuhn, principal broker for John L. Scott Real Estate in Lake Oswego.

    Every suburb is a unique real estate market, so it’s hard to generalize why some are experiencing more foreclosures now than before. In West Linn, for example, foreclosure filings were down the first six months of the year compared to a year earlier, while things are going in a different direction in its affluent neighbor to the north, Lake Oswego.

    Explanations vary

    One factor could be that many borrowers of modest means took out subprime loans, which were the first to go through foreclosure when those loans “exploded” and reset to much-higher interest rates. Working-class neighborhoods had the highest foreclosure rates in the early months of the Great Recession.

    “They got hit the hardest first,” says Rick Skaggs, a real estate broker at John L. Scott in Forest Grove.

    In the Portland area, an unusually high number of middle-class and affluent borrowers took out interest-only loans and Option ARM or negative-amortization loans. Option ARMs (adjustable rate mortgages) allowed the borrower to pay a minimum monthly mortgage payment — akin to a credit card minimum payment — while tacking more principal onto the loan. Option ARMs and other alternative loans took longer to unravel than subprime loans, and many are now winding up in foreclosure. And those mortgages were more common for more expensive properties.

    They were ticking time bombs, like subprime loans, but they had longer fuses, says Angela Martin, of the Portland public interest group Our Oregon.

    Stewart offers another reason for the surge in suburban foreclosures. He’s noticing a larger pool of buyers now for closer-in Portland neighborhoods, as people seek to avoid long commutes. People selling distressed properties in Northeast and Southeast Portland have more options to sell than someone saddled with an unaffordable mortgage in a suburb, Stewart says.

    Tables turned

    Recent state and national statistics also reveal a counterintuitive trend — affluent homeowners are going into foreclosure lately at a higher rate than others.

    Cusack recently analyzed data for Oregonians who took out traditional 30-year Federal Housing Administration loans since mid-2008. He found that the greater the loan amount, the greater the chances those became problem loans.

    “The default rate and the seriously delinquent rate were higher for higher-income loans,” Cusack says.

    Business owners and other affluent homebuyers who settled in suburban markets also had more resources available to hold onto their homes than lower-income homeowners, at least during the earlier stages of the Great Recession. That may explain why places such as Lake Oswego are seeing such an upsurge in foreclosures now.

    “If you paid a half-million for anything in Lake Oswego in 2007, you’re ‘under water,’ ” Stewart says. That’s the term for people who owe more on their mortgage than their home is worth.

    Portland bankruptcy attorney Ann Chapman, of the firm Vanden Bos & Chapman, is seeing an uptick in affluent clients coming to her office.

    They had been turning to pensions, savings and family money to hold onto their homes and businesses, Chapman says. But as the economic downturn grinds on, some clients see the best option as dumping their home and filing for bankruptcy reorganization.

    Affluent homeowners make a more sober assessment when they realize their homes aren’t going to be worth the mortgage amount for many years, she says. “They’re going to potentially be less emotionally involved when it comes to stopping the bleeding.”

    It’s often a different story for lower-income homeowners who hope to hold onto the only homes they’ve ever had, or hope to have. “They get blinded by their optimism or their paralysis,” Chapman says.

    Little relief in sight

    Many Realtors say it’s a great buyer’s market now for those who have steady jobs, because interest rates are low and prices have fallen so much. But don’t expect the onslaught of Portland-area foreclosures to end any time soon.

    “We are nowhere near the end if you look at the number of homeowners that will ultimately be at risk,” says Martin, citing a new study by the North Carolina-based Center for Responsible Lending. Based on that study, she figures Oregon is only halfway through the foreclosure crisis, in terms of the number of people affected by foreclosures.

    Skaggs says he wishes he could be more positive, but he doesn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. He just spoke with an investor last week who is about to walk away from five rental homes and let the bank take them back. Three of the homes are in the Beaverton area, one is in Bend and one is on the Oregon Coast.

    “I probably know at least 15 people that in the next month or two are going to walk away from their homes.”

    stevelaw@portlandtribune.com

    http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=128216600543594000

  • New Fed rules aim to protect home buyers


    WASHINGTON • In a move long sought by consumer advocates, the Federal Reserve issued on Monday rules intended to prevent brokers and lenders from unfairly profiting from new mortgage loans.

    The rules ban the abuse of the yield-spread premium, a practice that often put buyers into unstable and expensive loans simply to generate extra commissions.

    “This is a real milestone,” said Michael Calhoun of the Center for Responsible Lending, which had long argued against the premiums.

    “People didn’t just happen to end up in risky loans during the boom,” Mr. Calhoun added. “Mortgage brokers and other people on the frontlines were getting two to three times as much money to push buyers into those loans than they were into 30-year fixed-rate loans. So what do you think happened?”

    In some cases, borrowers never knew they were paying more in interest than they needed to. In others, they thought they were saving money by exchanging lower fees for a higher rate. But consumer groups argued that the borrowers often ended up paying both higher fees and a higher rate.

    While the new rules prohibit payments to a lender or broker based on the loan’s interest rate, they allow for compensation based on a fixed percentage of the loan amount.

    The Fed rules take effect in April. Similar and in some ways more comprehensive rules are in the financial reform bill that passed Congress this summer. Those rules will take effect later.

    Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in spotlight • The administration of President Barack Obama will bring together bankers, investors, housing experts and policymakers today for the Conference on the Future of Housing Finance. The goal is to address the problems of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

    Practically all new U.S. mortgages are guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration. Since the credit crisis began the Federal Reserve has purchased $1.1 trillion in agency mortgage securities as a means of propping up the market and keeping loan rates low. This creates great risk for the taxpayers.

    Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac “are quite profoundly broken,” economist Raj Date of the Cambridge Winter Center told CNN. “But no one wants to disrupt the only thing that’s working right now in the mortgage market.”

    Congress under pressure • Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., said the House Financial Services Committee would hold hearings in September on the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac situation.

    Lawmakers agree that Fannie and Freddie should stop borrowing heavily from the capital markets. Beyond that, there is little agreement.

    Democrats seem to be moving in the direction of turning Fannie and Freddie into much smaller entities that buy individual mortgages, pool them and sell them back into the market to private investors. Republicans who don’t back a fully private market are likely to push for a government guarantee that is available for any corporate mortgage investor packaging loans, not just Fannie and Freddie.

    However, some sort of government guarantee is likely, largely because of the influence of the housing lobby, including the Mortgage Bankers Association, the National Association of Realtors and the National Association of Home Builders.

    “The housing industry is dead set on having guarantees,” said Mark Calabria, of the CATO Institute in Washington.

    http://www.stltoday.com/news/national/article_36fd938b-22ec-518b-a5ec-73b2b104ec24.html

  • Oregon gets federal money to help unemployed avert foreclosures, Charles Pope, The Oregonian


    WASHINGTON — The Obama administration released $600 million Wednesday to help unemployed homeowners in Oregon and four other states avoid foreclosure.

    Oregon, where one in every 76 homes is facing foreclosure, qualifies for $88 million.The money will be used to help distressed homeowners.

    The money will be available to state housing authorities in Oregon, Ohio, South Carolina, Rhode Island and North Carolina “to support local initiatives to assist struggling homeowners in these five states that have high percentages of their population living in areas of economic distress due to unemployment,” the Treasury Department said.

    According to Treasury, the money will augment “targeted programs to expand options for homeowners struggling to make their mortgage payments because of unemployment, as well as programs to address first and second liens, facilitate short sales and/or deeds-in-lieu of foreclosure, and assist in the payment of arrearages.”
    State officials in Oregon estimate that up to 7,400 homeowners will be helped.

    Among other things, Oregon will:

    — provide funds to assist with loan modifications, including through principal reduction and arrearage payments.

    — provide up to six months of mortgage payment assistance for an unemployed borrower or a borrower experiencing other financial distress. Lenders or servicers would be required to match for up to an additional six months.

    — offer funds to ensure a successful modification or pay arrearages or other fees incurred during unemployment or financial distress once a homeowner has regained employment or recovered from that financial distress.

    — provide assistance to borrowers who participated in the state’s Hardest Hit Fund unemployed borrower program but did not subsequently regain employment in order to facilitate a short sale or deed-in-lieu of foreclosure. This assistance would be matched by lenders or servicers.

    In all, states estimate that approximately 50,000 struggling homeowners will receive aid.

    Wednesday’s announcement is only the latest in the Obama administration’s efforts to dent the foreclosure crisis.

    The money is part of the $2.1 billion is directing from its existing $75 billion mortgage assistance program to a total of 10 states. Each state designed its own plan. Treasury approved money in June for Arizona, California, Florida, Michigan and Nevada.

    In the latest package of aid, Ohio will receive $172 million — the largest amount of money. That could aid around 15,000 homeowners by helping borrowers pay their mortgage for up to a year while they search for jobs. It could also provide incentives for mortgage companies to reduce borrowers’ mortgage balances.

    North Carolina is receiving $159 million, and South Carolina is in line for $138 million while Rhode Island is receiving $43 million.

    http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2010/08/oregon_gets_federal_money_to_h.html

  • Multnomahforeclosures.com: Bank Owned Property List Update for July 2010


    July REO list for bank owned property has been added to Multnomahforeclosures.com . REO lists for Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington County has been addd to the site. The homes listed in these files were deeded back or returned to the investor or lender due to the finalizing of the foreclosure process. Many of these homes may already be on the market or will soon will be. It would not be a bad idea to contact the new owner of these properties and find out what their plans are when it comes to their future ownership of the property.

    Multnomah County Foreclosures
    http://multnomahforeclosures.com/

  • Wu secures more funding for Sellwood Bridge, by SARAH ROSS, Theoregonpolitico.com


    WASHINGTON, D.C. – With the Thursday night passage of the national Transportation, Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill, the Sellwood Bridge is $650,000 closer to being replaced.

    The nearly three-quarters of a million dollars, secured by Congressman David Wu, D-1, adds onto the $1,266,000 that Wu brought in last year to help “reduce the hazard of head-on collisions between vehicles on the narrow lanes.”

    “We cannot afford to sit back and let the Sellwood Bridge remain in a state of despair that threatens the safety of all of us,” said Wu in a media release sent out Friday morning. “A new Sellwood Bridge will once again be an economic driver that can carry busses and freight for local businesses.”

    Immediacy, however, is not key to the project according to Multnomah County spokesman Mike Pullen who says that construction isn’t set to begin until 2012. He stressed the fact that the weight of cars is not the problem with the bridge. Instead, the condition of the bridge itself is the biggest problem.

    As it stands, the bridge is closed to vehicles weighing more than 10 tons, meaning that busses and semi-trucks are barred from using it, due to cracks in the infrastructure discovered in 2004. Pullen said that the project is still seeking $40 million in federal funding to round out its $330 million tab.

    The bridge, which connects the Sellwood neighborhood of southeast Portland with Highway 43 in Oregon City on the west side of the Willamette River, was built in 1925 and is the lower Willamette River’s oldest “non-moveable bridge,” according to the Oregon Department of Transportation.

    State transportation legislation was passed during the 2009 session that provided $30 million for the Sellwood Bridge project and allowed the involved counties, Multnomah and Clackamas, to pass a surcharge on their local vehicle registrations to create additional funding.

    Director of the Center for Real Estate at Portland State University, Gerard Mildner, suggested tolling on the bridge might be a better way to pay for the project. He noted that the surcharge on vehicle registration in Clackamas and Multnomah counties gets closer to his desire in terms of geographic equity and presents the option for a section of the state with “acute” needs to not have to wait for the rest of the state to pitch in.

    He argued that the idea of a flat surcharge did nothing, however, to address the fact of those not using the bridge but still having to pay for it.

    “To me it’s the second or third best option, but it is certainly better than the statewide or federal funding source,” said Mildner.

    http://theoregonpolitico.com/blog/2010/08/02/wu-secures-more-funding-for-sellwood-bridge/?utm_source=Oregon-Politico-General-List&utm_campaign=5059a9bcf5-Oregon_Politico_RSS_Test&utm_medium=email

  • Demystifying Income Documentation, By Jason Hillard, Fireside Lending Group


    Having discussed the importance of the home loan pre-interview, I would like to dedicate a little time to income documentation. There is a lot of confusion about this subject, and thanks to an atrociously lazy mainstream media, and some irresponsible “new media”, disagreements on the issue are still coming up in day to day business operations.

    This is a list of the items your mortgage professional NEEDS from you, REGARDLESS of what type of home loan you want or what type of borrower you are.

    –most recent 30 days of paystubs
    –most recent statement for any depository account, ALL PAGES
    –most recent statement for any other liquid assets or retirement plan
    –most recent 2 years federal tax returns with ALL PAGES/SCHEDULES
    –any divorce/alimony/child support documentation
    –any bankruptcy discharge documentation from the last 10 years

    The reality is that most loans now are what is referred to as “full doc”, which is to say that you will be subject to a financial rectal exam. There are some stated income programs coming back, but bank on your next home loan funding as a result of a full fledged inquest into your personal finances. We’re talking mortgage court-marshal, so you need to be prepared.

    It may sound funny, but you really should frame your thinking around this analogy. Your mortgage professional is really taking up your case, not just packaging a home loan. The underwriter is the judge, jury, and executioner. That is why you need someone who vigorously represents you, like us. (We are not above plugging our outstanding services.)

    So I am now going to explain the thinking behind each of these items, from an underwriter’s perspective. You know you are a good person who will pay back what is owed, and so do we. Let’s delve into the mind of the cagey underwriter though, and see where it leads.

    30 days of paystubs
    This is pretty simple, obviously. But it does go a little beyond “does this person have a job that pays legal tender?”

    What the elusive underwriter is searching for is your year-to-date (YTD) numbers. Does this person work an average of 40 hours? Is there overtime pay that is consistent? What about commisions and bonuses? And is this borrower’s income consistent with the tax returns provided?

    Now, some check stub formats provide a lot of information, and others leave something to be desired. However, it is estimated that 30 days worth of paystubs will provide an accurate representation of monthly income calculated on a yearly basis. “In plain english”, you say? Your YTD pay divided by the number of months so far this year minus one month equals your monthly income.

    Most Recent Depository Statements
    This is usually your most recent bank statement, for all accounts you have. This helps to verify liquid assets. It is very important when running your situation through the automated underwriting software to have this information accurate. This verifies the number of months of cash reserves you have and/or whether you actually have your down-payment available.

    Why do we emphasize ALL PAGES? We know…your balance is on the first page. However, when an underwriter sees “page 1 of 7″ on your bank statement, they immediately want to know, and quite honestly NEED to know what the other 6 pages say. Are there car loans, lines of credit, etc. that aren’t shown on the 1st page? The underwriter needs to assume the worst at all times in order to protect their mortgage company from exposure to loan buybacks.

    Other Asset & Retirement Statements
    More “liquifiable” assets. Stocks, bonds, 401ks, IRAs, etc. What resources do you have that you can sell to make your payments in the event that your income disappears? That’s why we need proof of these items. Important note: for most loan programs, the value of 401ks and IRAs will be decreased by 3o per cent. The reason for this is that if you lose your job, and have to dip into these funds to make your payments, there will be about 30% in penalties and taxes you will have to pay for early withdrawal.

    Last Two Years Federal Tax Returns (All Pages)
    These aren’t always needed. However, we always ask for them. More and more, the automated underwriting systems are requiring them. And even if the underwriter doesn’t need them, it’s a good idea to show them to your mortgage professional. Why? Because, you will be signing a disclosure (4506T) stating that the lender has the right to request transcripts of your last 2 federal tax returns. This right will be exercised. Having a competent mortgage professional look over them upfront assures a smaller chance of “issues” coming up later. You may have what are called “2106” expenses, which reduce your income in the eyes of the underwriter. If you are riding the fence with your debt-to-income ratio, this can implode your home loan.

    As for the self-employed, we will always need 2 years of federal tax returns. There’s no way around it right now.

    Divorce Decrees & Child Support
    Divorce is a nasty thing, and it can rear its ugly head AGAIN the next time you apply for a mortgage. Is there an alimony agreement? Alimony reduces your income. How long will it continue? Is there child support involved? Again, how long will you be obligated to pay it? Is either amount scheduled to increase? The bank has to look at the big picture when it comes to your overall liabilities, and these can play a huge role in determining your debt-to-income ratio.

    Bankruptcy
    Chapter 7 or Chapter 13? When was it discharged? What was included? What was excluded? The details and date of your bankruptcy discharge is a crucial piece of information. The lender must document what liabilities remain, which are cleared, and that the requisite amount of time, as prescribed by the mortgage product you are applying for, has transpired since the discharge.

    Other Circumstances
    You may have a pension that you are looking forward to in the future. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have any cash value now, so it cannot be considered as an asset right now. And you’re not receiving any income from it right now, so it doesn’t offset your debt-to-income ratio.

    Maybe you just started your own business last year, and things are going great. Unfortunately, current underwriting guidelines do not allow us to consider self-employed income unless you have been in business for two years, as evidenced by 2 years of federal tax returns.

    There are all kinds of unique situations, and we are always happy to help you determine where you stand.

    Please understand that in order to truly apply for a home loan, you need to have these items prepared. We don’t ask for them just to make your life miserable. Your mortgage professional is your advocate, not your enemy. You have to present them with ALL of the information so that they can properly represent you in front of the judge. I mean underwriter.

    If you have any questions about income documentation or mortgages in general, please feel free to shoot us an email! Jason Hillard, Fireside Lending Group jasonh@firesidelendinggroup.com

  • MultnomahForeclosures.com Update: New Notice of Default Lists Posted


    Multnomahforeclosures.com was updated today with the largest list of Notice Defaults to date. With Notice of Default records dating back over 2 years. Multnomahforeclosures.com documents the fall of the great real estate bust of the 21st centry. The lists are of the raw data taken from county records.

    It is not a bad idea for investors and people that are seeking a home of their own to keep an eye on the Notice of Default lists. Many of the homes listed are on the market or will be.

    All listings are in PDF and Excel Spread Sheet format.

    Multnomah County Foreclosures

    http://multnomahforeclosures.com

  • FHA CHANGES ARE COMING!


    Mortgage Insurance Premiums increased from 1.75 to 2.25% – Effective April 1st
    · Seller Contribution decreased from 6% to 3% – TBA early Spring

    · Increased Monthly MI – Effective date TBA

    Increased down payment for borrowers with lower credit scores TBA

    TAX CREDIT: Buyer must have a binding purchase contract by April 30th to qualify for tax credit.

    WHAT DOES ALL OF THIS MEAN?

    A 200k purchase price after April 30th may have up to a 15k impact on the borrower.
    (Assuming current rates stay the same. Well…we all know what happens when we assume J)

    ACTION REQUIRED:

    Convert any “shoppers” into BUYERS between NOW and April 30th!

    Don’t hesitate to call or e-mail with any questions you may have concerning how this will affect your clients.

    Melissa Stashin

    Sr. Mortgage Banker/ Branch Manager
    NMLS #40033

    Pacific Residential Mortgage, LLC

    2 CenterPointe Dr. STE 500

    Lake Oswego, OR 97035

    (503) 670-0525 x113

    (971) 221-5656 Cell

    (503) 670-0674 Fax

    (800) 318-4571 Toll Free

    http://www.TeamStashin.com

  • Multnomah County Foreclosures Web Site Updated with New Lists


    Multnomahforeclosures.com was updated today with the largest list of Notice Defaults to date. With Notice of Default records dating back nearly 2 years. Multnomahforeclosures.com idocuments the fall of the great real estate bust of the 21st centry.

    All listings are in PDF and Excel Spread Sheet format.

    Multnomah County Foreclosures
    http://multnomahforeclosures.com

  • Important New Regulations Affecting Closing Dates!


    From the Desk of Phil Querin, Partner, Davis Wright Tremaine, LLC, PMAR/OREF Legal Counsel

    Although the initial annual percentage rate (APR) on a residential loan is disclosed in the Good Faith Estimate early in the purchase transaction, it can change before closing. Under the new rules enacted in the Truth in Lending Act, effective on July 30, 2009 (last Thursday), if the actual (i.e. the final) APR varies from that initially disclosed on the Good Faith Estimate by at least .125%, then there is a mandatory additional three (3) business day waiting period before the transaction can close. So if the final APR isn’t disclosed until late in the transaction, it could potentially force the three (3) business day period to extend beyond the closing date set forth in the Sale Agreement.

    As you know, the Oregon Real Estate Forms (OREF) closing date is written in stone – there are no automatic extensions – so if it appears that the APR could be held up or there is any indication that the APR will change at closing, brokers would be well-advised to get seller and buyer to agree in advance to a written extension as a contingency if the final APR causes the three (3) business day period to extend beyond the scheduled closing date. OREF will be meeting shortly to consider some additional language for the new sale agreement form, although it won’t actually get printed and distributed until early next year. In the meantime, I have recommended to my clients that they may wish to consider adding an addendum to their sale agreements with language such as the following: ” In the event that Buyer’s final Annual Percentage Rate (“APR”) differs from the APR initially disclosed to the Buyer in the Good Faith Estimate by .125% or more, the Closing Deadline defined in the Real Estate Sale Agreement shall automatically be extended for three (3) additional business days in accordance with Regulation Z of the Truth in Lending Act ,as amended on July 30, 2008.”

    This, of course, is subject to the review of the companies’ principal broker and legal counsel.

  • Multnomahforeclosures.com Updated with New Notice of Default Listings


    The new update of the Multnomah Foreclosures web site (http://multnomahforeclosures.com/) includes NOD listings dating back to February of 2008. This data was added because we had it and there has been a lot of interest in this data by the visitors of the site.

    Multnomah Foreclosures
    http://multnomahforeclosures.com/

  • Short Sale vs Foreclosure – EFFECT ON CREDIT, By Paul Dean, Evergreen Ohana Group


    I thought this information would be beneficial to know, when you are dealing with sellers on a Short Sale basis. Many consumer don’t realize the impact of a short sale on their credit. Read the attached article and commentary from our credit agency below. There are a couple KEY pieces:

    1. Foreclosure – lenders won’t do another loan for 4 yrs. (Bankruptcy is now 4yrs also)

    2. Short sale – if they keep payments current and their credit is relatively intact, and they do due diligence with the lender to determine how they will report the Short sale on their credit report (ie. “settled” is the best, Deed in Lieu is the same effect as a “foreclosure”) this will result is the least amount of damage to their credit rating. That also goes for a Notice of Default (NOD), even though a foreclosure process was started and the seller is able to sell the home prior to it actually going to foreclosure sale, this will be reported as “foreclosure in process” on their credit, which is treated as a “foreclosure” for credit scoring purposes.

    3. Oregon is not a deficiency State. Meaning that Oregon does not pursue the seller for any deficiency. The banks just take the loss, the seller’s credit is damaged, and that’s the end of it.

    4. The biggest advantage to sellers in a Short Sale is keeping payments as current as possible and getting the lender to reflect the account as “settled”. That will allow this borrower to secure another home loan sooner (maybe 2yrs), rather than if a foreclosure or NOD (4yrs) is reported on their credit.

    I think this is valuable information to share with your sellers.

    To Your Success,

    Paul Dean
    Principal
    Evergreen Ohana Group
    5331 SW Macadam Ave, Suite 287
    Portland, OR 97239

    Office: (503) 892-2800 Ext.11
    Fax: (503) 892-2803
    Email: pauld@evergreenohana.com
    Website: http://www.evergreenohana.com
    OR ML-21,WA 510-LO-33391, WA:520-CL-50385

  • Multnomah County Foreclosure site updated


    New foreclosure reports listed on the multnomah county foreclosure web site. This week a new addition is the bank owned property lists (REO List) for the month of February 2009. This list consists of properties that were forcloused or deeded back to the lender in lew of foreclosure. Some of these homes are on the market but most are not. These lists will have the name and contact information (address) of the owners (lenders) of the property. Contacting the owners for status might allow an opportunity for you to purchase any of these properties in post foreclosure.

    Mulnomah County Foreclosures
    http://multnomahforeclosures.com/

    Fred Stewart
    President
    Stewart Group Realty Inc.
    fred@sgrealtyinc.com
    http://www.sgrealty.us/
    503-289-4970 (Phone)
    503-296-2336 (Fax)

  • Montavilla Craftsman Bungalow $399,500 w/Contract Terms


    Outstanding early Portland Bungalow with all of the old world charm a person could ask for. Hardwood floors, large kitchen, finished basement, fenced back yard with large deck.

    Located in one of Portlands best neighborhoods and near Providence Hospital. Just a short walk away from Laurelhurst Park, Bus and MAX lines, and freeways. There are many restuants and shops in the area and even during rush hour you are minutes from downtown Portland or a good ride if you bike.

    Owner will consider selling home on Terms (Land Sales Contract) with 5% downpayment. Call Fred Stewart for more details.

    4928 NE Flanders
    Portland, Oregon

    Fred Stewart
    Stewart Group Realty Inc.
    info@sgrealty.us
    503-289-4970

  • Multnomah Foreclosures Web Site Updated: http://multnomahforeclosures.com/


    Multnomah County Forclosures (http://multnomahforeclosures.com) has been updated with the largest foreclosure list to date. There is also a new Mortgage Broker of the week listed. Brian Collins of Sound Mortgage.

    The foreclosure list for 10 other Oregon counties are also listed on the site this week.

    Multnomah County Foreclosures
    http://multnomahforeclosures.com

  • First Look at February Numbers – Bank-Owned & Short Sales Almost 30% of the Market, By Bob Broad


    I pulled preliminary numbers for February real estate activity in Portland, and want to report the following highlights: Pending sales volume is up from January, despite the short month. After all the month-end sales get reported we could end up with a ”nice” month. Preliminary numbers have us down to about 11 months of inventory. Since selling has been heaviest at lower price-points and especially with first time home buyers who are taking advantage of more affordable housing and tax credits, we’re not surprised to see healthier sales inventories in the east-side regions of Portland.

    Bank-Owned and Short Sales are Selling in Portland
    Over 25% of all the transactions in February were with bank-owned properties and properties requiring third party approval (short sales and relo’s). 18% of the active listings today are either bank owned or require third party approval. Over 1/3 of the closed sales in Beaverton and Tigard areas were on these “distressed” properties. Similarly deal hunters were active in Lake Oswego last month. Half of the current listings are vacant. This is down slightly, which is good. Nonetheless, we have noticed that many of today’s vacant listings become tomorrow’s short sale and/or bank-owned property.

    We stand ready to help you understand how to maximize your proceeds if you want or need to sell. Call us for a free consultation, and we’ll show you how we can court our extensive buyer traffic to get your pricing strategy right and connect you with your target audience. If you’re ready to purchase, we can help you find the right home and negotiate great terms.

    Sign up here for our Investor Notification for Portland Bank Owned, Short Sales, Fixers & Foreclosures

    Portland Real Estate Cafe
    http://www.portlandrealestatecafe.com